Software:I Spy Spooky Mansion

Short description: 2009 puzzle video game

I Spy Spooky Mansion
Developer(s)	Black Hammer Productions
Publisher(s)	Scholastic
Series	I Spy
Platform(s)	Windows, Mac OS, Mac OS X, iPhone OS, Wii
Release	Windows September 7, 1999 Mac OS September 7, 1999 iPhone OS September 3, 2009 Wii October 2010
Genre(s)	Puzzle
Mode(s)	Single-player

I Spy Spooky Mansion is a "search-and-find" PC game developed by Black Hammer Productions and published by Scholastic in 1999 based on the I Spy children's books.

Gameplay

In the game, The player starts off at the entrance of a haunted house. They enter and are locked inside. The "Guide" (aka Skeleton and additionally known as Skelly) informs the player that they must earn puzzle pieces to escape the house. They search the various rooms of the mansion for the objects specified on the bottom of the screen. Once all of the objects in an area have been found, Skelly appears and awards the player with a puzzle piece. Once the player has collected all of the puzzle pieces, they may combine them inside the message frame to obtain instructions leading to Skelly's secret study in the library. To get into the library, the blue book must be pulled, followed by the green book and finally the red book. This causes the head on the bookshelf to move, unlocking the secret entrance to Skelly's study. The player can then escape through the window by climbing down a rope with Skelly, taking them back to the front entrance of the house. The player is then invited back into the house for more I Spy riddles. From there the player must find the ingredients to Skelly's favourite recipe: Shrinking Soup. Once the player gains all of the ingredients for Shrinking Soup, they are able to eat it and escape the mansion through a mousehole by the front door. This hole takes the player back to the front entrance of the mansion, where Skelly invites the player into the house for a final game of riddles. To escape for a third time, the player must collect all of the parts to fix Skelly's ghost machine. Once all of the pieces are collected, the player uses the blueprints supplied by Skelly to fix the ghost machine. Six ghosts are created using the ghost machine, and then the ghosts are put back into the machine. Finally, Skelly throws himself into the machine to turn into a ghost, called the "Get-Out Ghost." The "Get-Out Ghost" propels the player out the chimney of the mansion, and the game is over.

Re-releases

On September 3, 2009, Scholastic re-released a version of the game on the iPhone and re-released it on the Wii in October 2010. The re-releases expand on the original game in many ways, by adding an additional story after the secret message is uncovered, and adding additional rooms. They boast over 30 I Spy riddles, however many of these riddles have the player revisiting previous stages multiple times.